50 jaar GVO en Gezondheidsbevordering

The Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion is an influential document for the theory and practice of promoting the populations health. The wider scope leads to the broadening of the action from education only to a mix of interventions. A first review document on the effects of health education and health promotion are published. To stimulate systematic planning the PRevention EFectiveness Fostering Instrument (PREFFI) is developed. The ministry delegates the responsibility for health promotion to the City Councils. At the national level policy intentions to reduce the socio-economic health differences depend on the political colour of the government. Increasingly the ministry takes action to steer the development of health promotion from a national level: it creates the Centre for Healthy Living with the intention to stimulate the implementation of ‘proven effective’ interventions. The health promotion profession is more and more diluted; it is a part of the work of many professionals in the health care. The knowledge from the behaviour sciences is not always taken into account. Some conclusions on the developments in the 50 years are formulated.

- The identity and potential of this field is weaken ed by a diversity of labels and organisational arrangements.

- In policy most of the attention is on thematic activities. Working on an integrated health promotion intervention is far from being realised. Too many short term projects are initiated and evaluated with the predictable result: not that effective.

- In all those years the call for cooperation and coordination has been expressed, but it is still not realised, as it was not backed up by legislation and investment.

- The number of health promotion professionals has been growing, but their role in the political arena is still marginal. There is a systematic underestimation of the manpower needed to make interventions effective.